BC Hydro illegally discouraged injured worker from filing claim
Supreme Court upholds Workers' Compensation Board ruling that utility discouraged employee compensation claim.
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The Supreme Court of British Columbia has upheld a Workers' Compensation Board decision that found BC Hydro illegally discouraged a worker from claiming compensation for a workplace injury.
The case dates to November 2020, when an unnamed worker raised concerns about a fellow employee through BC Hydro's respectful-workplace process. Three months later, she went off work for medical reasons described in the court record as a "mental disorder."
Justice Jennifer Whately found that BC Hydro management advised the worker she would receive disability benefits instead and was not required to file a claim with the Workers' Compensation Board. The private disability benefits would have bypassed the Crown corporation, which operates as WorkSafeBC.
When the worker eventually filed a WCB claim in August 2023—more than two and a half years after going off work—the board completed an inspection and found that "the employers [sic] management at this workplace have openly impeded a worker from reporting their injury to the Board." This violated Section 73 of the Workers Compensation Act, which prohibits employers from discouraging workers from reporting injuries.
BC Hydro argued the law didn't apply to mental disorders at the time and that it had no intent to discourage the worker. The court rejected both arguments. BC Hydro serves more than 1.9 million customers in B.C. and employs about 8,100 people. Employers can face fines of $6,557 for a first offence of failing to report workplace injuries, though such violations have rarely been investigated or punished.